Week Five Waiver Wire Pickups

I’m setting aside the Smokin Hot category this week, I just don’t think there are any guys out there that are “must have” players this week. Sure, every league is different, but by and large, it was a quiet fantasy week for those guys that aren’t already on a fantasy roster. That doesn’t mean you should be scouring your waiver wire as you look to improve the bottom of your lineup, while also keeping players off another team’s roster. There are a few guys to consider this week, especially at the wide out position. Don’t let a week go by without closely examining your roster, comparing them to the available players.

I’m filling up the space that was used for that category with something new. I get a lot of emails asking who I can cut loose to make room for waiver wire pickups…I thought it would make sense to talk about some guys that I’m not quite ready to give up on (ie. don’t cut them yet). We’ll start things off slowly, real slowly, talking about one guy this week. It may make sense to keep the category going and expand it, it might not, we’ll see. For now, we’re trying something new to spice things up. As always, any feedback, let me know, thanks for reading!

This seems like as good a place as any to address the Trent Green and “hot pickup” issue from last week. Got a lot of feedback for that, much appreciated (I think). I may be in the minority here, but I still have faith that the Rams offense will come alive. An offense that boasts Torry Holt and Steven Jackson has to be good, right? RIGHT? When St.Louis announced that Green was going to be starting last week, I felt that as a capable NFL quarterback, and with those weapons, he was in a pretty good position to succeed. In fantasy football, you have to strike and grab players before they become too hot that you aren’t in a position to grab them from the waiver wire, you want to get them the week before they get white hot so you don’t have to fight for them. That said, Green didn’t light the world on fire, and he certainly looked like a quarterback that hadn’t seen any significant action all season. With things changing in St.Louis, it would appear that Bulger will be back on the field as the starter. I have Bulger on a couple of teams, I’m holding onto him, waiting for him to rebound. Hopefully I won’t be waiting all season…

Apparently, the three week love affair with Pierre Thomas is now over. I never understood why a team would consider its starting runningback as being so explosive they have him returning kicks, then inside the 5 yard line they turn things over to his backup (only to watch the backup get stuffed on every attempt). Out with Thomas, in with Deuce McAllister, who ran for 70+ yards and scored from a yard out as well. I wouldn’t go crazy expecting this kind of production from McAllister on a weekly basis, but it is clear that at this time, he is the backup to Bush who will get the goal line carries.

I’m bumping up Moore a category. Seven catches the week before last, another seven catches for 100+ yards and 2 touchdowns..that’s enough to get him mentioned in this space in back to back weeks. The Saints passing offense is not a bad place for you to be right now and Moore seems to be a guy that is going to see the ball on a very regular basis.

On the Radar

PK Rian Lindell, Buffalo

Yes, we continue our weekly column with the mention of a kicker that might be on your waiver wire. The Bills are on fire this year, and Lindell has been the beneficiary of the scoring opportunities. He’s been solid all season, five successful kicks in the first three games, followed by a three field goal effort last week, two of which were from 45 yards out. Looking to upgrade your backup kicker, look to the man booting for the Bills.

WR Muhsin Muhammad, Carolina

Eight catches for nearly 150 yards and a touchdown last week gets Muhammed mentioned in this week’s column. I have a hard time giving him a full recommendation because his week four output was more than his first three weeks combined. Yes, he should get more looks now that Steve Smith is back, but I wouldn’t expect too many weeks like this out of Muhammed.

Yea, we’re digging deep here, but I really think the Rams offense is a sleeping giant waiting to wake up. Avery is currently listed as the starter opposite Torry Holt and found the endzone last week on an end around. It remains to be seen what the coaching change is going to mean, but the Rams are looking to get Avery the ball, so hop aboard the Rams passing offense before it leaves the station.

TE Zach Miller, Oakland

This week’s tight end waiver wire wonder is Zack Miller. It’s been an extremely tough year for the fantasy owner looking for a consistent backup tight end. At this point in the season, Miller’s 95 yards and a touchdown last week announces his candidacy for your backup TE position. Go ahead, roll the dice and hope for 50 or so yards on a weekly basis. At worst, he’s worth considering to cover your starter’s bye week.

I am thinking that his 122 yards last week was a bit of a fluke, but the Cardinals are a team that are passing like crazy so its not far fetched to see Breaston emerging as a low level WR3. Coupled with the fact that Anquan Boldin‘s status is up in the air, if you’ve got room at the bottom of your roster, take a chance on this Cardinal speedster.

With Willie Parker out, and rookie Rashard Mendenhall leaving Monday night’s game (largely ineffective, though the Ravens are tough against the run), the Steelers turned to Davis on first and second down. Mewelde Moore has been seeing the field on third down, but he hasn’t seen much of the ball as the Steelers are struggling to protect Big Ben in passing situations. Why am I telling you all of this? Dynasty leagues are a difficult place to find runningbacks, especially during the season. Keep an eye on the Steelers depth chart and check on Mendenhall’s post game status, if he is out as well, Davis might continue to see some time, but with very limited fantasy success, so only if you are extremely desperate.

If the Brian Westbrook injury continues to linger on, that’s more of a load that Correll Buckhalter has to carry. This is a load that I’m not sure that he can carry for more than a few weeks on his own. Unfortunately for Booker, not only is Buckhalter getting nearly 100% of the action with Westbrook on the shelf, but when Booker got his chance for a few plays last week, he didn’t look good, struggling in pass blocking. Booker will have to significantly improve in that area…or else hope that Buckhalter misses time as well. Booker is an extremely deep waiver consideration.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen enough of Matt Cassell to see that he’s not the guy that is going to lead the Patriots team into the playoffs. Cassell did ok for a game or so, but with film now available to be studied, he looked less than ordinary. New England didn’t throw away a third round pick in the rookie draft on O’Connell for nothing. The guess here is that it’s only a matter of time before he sees the field, perhaps sooner rather than later. I wouldn’t expect much, but he does have some weapons at his disposal so 250 yards or so per week is not out of the question.

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